A pie chart comparing the seismic moment release of the three largest earthquakes for the hundred-year period from 1906 to 2005 with that for all earthquakes of magnitudes <6, 6 to 7, 7 to 8 and >8 for the same period

Earthquakes of magnitude 8.0 and greater since 1900. The apparent 3D volumes of the bubbles are linearly proportional to their respective fatalities.[1]

This list is biased towards recent years due to development and widespread deployment of seismometers. Also, records that were detailed enough to make magnitude estimates (est.) were not generally available before 1900.[2]

This is a list or major earthquakes by the dollar value of property (public and private) losses directly attributable to the earthquake. Wherever possible, indirect and socioeconomic losses are excluded. Please note that damage estimates for particular earthquakes may vary through time as more data becomes available.

The figure of 230,000 dead is based on a historical conflation of this earthquake with earthquakes in November 1137 on the Jazira plain and on September 30, 1139 in the Azerbaijani city of Ganja. The first mention of a 230,000 death toll was by Ibn Taghribirdi in the fifteenth century.[48]

The ground shook for 30 to 40 seconds around 5:20 am, and destruction occurred within a 300 km radius. 93% of structures in Messina were destroyed and ~70,000 residents died. Rescuers searched for weeks, and whole families were pulled out alive days later. A 40-foot (12 m) tsunami struck nearby coasts. Reggio Calabria on the Italian mainland also suffered heavy damage.

This earthquake with an epicenter beneath Izu Ōshima Island in Sagami Bay, shook the Kantō plain on the Japanese island of Honshū at 11:58 am. Shaking duration reported between 4 and 10 minutes, devastating Tokyo, Yokohama, Chiba, Kanagawa, and Shizuoka.[59] Shaking slid the 93-ton Great Buddha statue at Kamakura almost two feet forward.[60] Casualty estimates range from 100,000 to 142,800, the latter figure including ~40,000 missing later presumed dead.

Affecting an area (mostly rugged terrain) of about 30,000 km2 [11,600 sq mi], this earthquake damaged about 6,440 km [4,000 mi] of roads, and 50–70% of services, including power, water and sanitation. Approximately 400,153 houses, 6,298 schools and 796 health facilities were damaged or destroyed (UN 2006). Death toll estimates range from 86,000–87,351, with approximately 138,000 seriously injured and 3.5 million people displaced.

^It was 7.9 Ms according to McCann and Pennington, with its exact epicenter undetermined. McCann, William R. & Pennington, Wayne D. (1990). "Seismicity, large earthquakes and the margin of the Caribbean Plate". In Dengo, Gabriel & Case, James E. The Caribbean region. The Geology of North America. Boulder, Colorado: Geological Society of America. pp. 291–306, page 300. ISBN978-0-8137-5212-9.